Grain-drier.



No. 674,040. Patented May I4, 190|. S. B. SAMUELSUN &. C. P. ANDERSON.

GRAIN DRIER.

(Application led Jan. 26. 1900.) (N0 MOBL) 2 Sheets-Sheet l.

No. 674,040. Patented may I4, |901. s. B. sAMuELsnN 4c. P. ANDERSON.GRAIN DRIEB.

(Application filed Jan. 26, 1900.) (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

ATTORNEV.

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' iris *rares ATET FFICE SAMUEL SAMUELSON AND CHARLES I. ANDERSON, OFSTROMSBURG,

NEBRASKA.

GRAIN-UNER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 674,040, dated May 14,1901. Application nea January 26,1900. serai No. 2,836. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that we, SAMUEL B. SAMUEL- soN and CHARLES P. ANDERSON,residing at Stromsburg, in the county of Polk and State of Nebraska,have invented certain useful Improvements in Grain-Driers; and we dohereby declare that thefollowing is a full, clear, and exact descriptionthereof, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which itappertains to make and use the same, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, which form a part of ,this specification.

This invention relates to an improvement in grain-driers.

Our invention relates more particularly to that class of grain-driers inwhich a plurality or battery of steam-heated pipes are employed.

It consists in various features of construction hereinafter'speciiically described and claimed, having reference more particularlyto the means for drying the grain, which is made to pass over, as wellas through, aheated drier so arranged as to bring out the most economicand practical results.

In the accompanying drawings we have shown in Figure 1 a side elevation,With portions broken away, of a grain-drier embodying our invention.Fig. 2 shows a vertical cross-sectional view disclosing the arrangementof the superposed driers with portions broken away. Fig. 3 is an endview disclosing the disposition of the driving-belt.

Qur invention embodies, essentially, a suitable frame or base comprisingthe uprights B B, within which is held a trough 17, one edge or upwardextension w of which preferably extends beyond the other, as is shown inFig. 3, and an upper hopperA. Within this lower trough 17 and near thebottom thereof is a shaft 35, .provided with a spirallydisposed flange34, which flange acts as a feeder to feed the material that is droppedinto this trough, toward one end thereof. Near the upper end, withinthis trough 17, is the preferably-reeded cylinder 32, mounted upon anaxle 21, and upon one side is asliding board 15, which can be broughtagainst or away from this reeded cylinder, which cylinder upon theopposite side works adjacent and preferably in contact with the troughextension 5c, so that the grain which is feed into this trough and fallsupon this reeded cylinder may be fed into the trough at any desirablespeed. 'lhe larger the distance between the slide 15 and the reededcylinder 32 the more quickly will the grain feed through the same. Inorder to rotate this reeded cylinder, which we term a feed-roll, weprovide the shaft 21 with a sheave 22, as shown in Fig. l, over whichthe belt 22 passes, working over 'a sheave 23 upon the shaft 35 of thelower feed-rol1.

Extending upward from the uprights B, which are united by means of thesill C, are the lower bolsters 20, which are provided with the ears 20'and which bolsters are adapted to receive the tubes 2. Referring now toFig. 1, it will be noticed that the tube 2 rests upon the bolsters 2O 2Oand that an intermediate bolster 19, provided with two seatings, issecured to the ears of the lower bolster by means of the bolts 27. Thesetubes 2 are used in superposed batteries, as is shown, and each beingseparated from the adjacent one by means of one of these bolsters 19,which are provided with the projecting ears 40, so that they can bereadily united by means of bolts 27.

Surrounding each of the tubes 2 are two counterpart and approximatelysemicircular shells 13, as shown more clearly in Fig. 3, each shellbeing provided with a projecting flange O. These open-ended shells havetheir ends closed and are provided with an upper and lower opening. Inreferring to Fig. 3 it will be noticed that the opening between theupper projecting iianges O and the downwardly-projecting iianges of theshells above always terminate a suitable distance above the uppertermination of the upper flanges of the lower shells, so that a clearopen spaceis provided between each, of the superposed shells. Thesecounterpart shells are further semicircular, so that they provide aspace of equal distance around each of the tubes 2, as clearly shown inFig. 3. Each of these tubes 2 is provided above with the deflector 37,so that the grain dropping from the shell above will not be adapted torest upon the circular upper portion of the tubes 2.

Passing through each tube 2 is an iron pipe 3 of a diameter less thanthe tube 2. The

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diameter or capacity of this pipe 3 is so regulated that it approximatesand is equal to the capacity or space between the shells 18 and the tube2. This is done so that the material, which at one time passes betweenthe tube 2 and shells 18 and afterward through the tube 3, will not clogand may be continuously fed without interruption. These tubes 3, it willbe noticed, at each end project a suitable distance beyond the tubes 2,and that the lower tube 3, referring now to Fig. 1, is connected at oneend to the upper tube by means of the pipe 37, and this pipe 37 in turn,by means of the similar pipe 37, is connected to the tube 3 above, andto this similar tube again by means of the small pipe 37 is againconnected to the top or highest tube 3, as clearly shown in Fig. l.

Passing through each of the end caps 45 is a shaft 36, supported withinthese caps 45, and at one end these shafts project and are provided eachwith a pulley 28, as clearly shown.

Extending from the lowest tube 3 is an eXitduct K, as is shown. Now itwill be noticed that each of these tubes 3 is provided with a.

spiral feediug-iiange 30; but it should be remembered that thesefeeding-flanges are revolved in opposite directions alternately, sothat, referring now to Fig. 1, the upper spiral would feed toward theelevator 5, the next lowest toward the belt 29, the next lowest towardthe elevator again, and the lowest again toward the belt 29. In order tobring about the proper rotation of these shafts 36, the driving-belt 29is made to pass alternately from side to side, as is shown at Fig. 2,the belt passing over the main drivingpulley P being secured to the maindriveshaft S.

The steam is conducted into the pipes 2, so that the space between thesepipes and the tubes 3 forms a steam-chamber, the supplypipe 13 beingprovided with the branch 14, leading into these pipes, as is shown inFig. 1. To insure a proper circulation, the pipe 11, upon the oppositeside, is provided with the branches l2, also leading into these tubes 2,insuring a free circulation of the steam.

Now the operation of my device would be as follows: The steam havingbeen admitted into the tubes 2 to raise the temperature of these tubes,the grain would be fed into the hopper A by any suitable means and thensuccessively pass around the shells 18 into the succeeding drier untilit finally reached the lower roll 32, when it would gradually lodge andslowly bank up and interrupt and choke up the full series of shells, sothat we would have a solid column of grain from the hopper A down to andresting upon the feed-roll 32. Because of the lower flanges O beingnearer together than the flanges below it the grain will angle upwardand not escape out of the shells oifering a certain amount of theirsurface to the open air. The time that the grain is made to circulateabout the outside of the tubes 2 is determined by the speed of theroller 32 and the position of the valve 15, which, as has beendescribed, is in the form of a fiat board suitably held between thebolsters 2O 20. Now as the grain drops from the feedroller 32 into thelower trough 17 it is fed,

toward the Y end thereof into the keeper 4, within which is an ordinaryendlesselevator cup system as is usual in mills, and through this leg 5the grain is fed upward in the cups into the chute 6, as is shown inFig. 1, down which it slides into the hopper 7, so that it enters theupper or highermostpositioned tube 3, where itis fed through the tubeover which it previously passed toward the opposite end, then upwardthrough the vertical communicating brauch 37, then toward the oppositeend again, and so moves backward and forward until it iinallyescapes outof the tube K into any suitable receptacle. From this it will be noticedthat we use both the outer surface and inner surface of two nested tubesforming a heating-jacket.

In order to remove the sweat accumulated within the tubes 2, we connectthem to an ordinary exhaust-fan 8, which is provided with a main tube 9,from lwhich extend the branches 10, which enter the tubes 3, these tubes3 being provided with openings y at their opposite ends to permit theingress of fresh air. This also insures the carrying off of all the dustand lighter impurities.

It is of course understood that these driers could be made of any numberof superposed hollow heated feeders, and they could be used side by sidein batteries and simply connected by means of elevators.

Having thus described our said invention, what we claim as new, anddesire to secure by United States Letters Patent, is-

1. In a grain-drier the combination with a hollow cylinder, of a hopperabove said cylinder, a shell communicating with said hopper surroundingsaid cylinder and provided with an exit-opening, and an elevatorcommunicating with said exit-opening and hollow cylinder, as and for thepurpose set forth.

2. The combination with a steam-holder provided with an interiorchamber, of a hopper above said steam-holder, a shell communicating withsaid hopper and surrounding said steam-holder provided below with anexit-opening, a receiving-trough, an elevator communicating with saidreceiving-trough, and an escape-duct extending from said interiorchamber.

3. The combination with a suitable standard, of a plurality ofsuperposed housings provided with interior chambers, a plurality ofcounterpart shells forming jackets surrounding said housings, each shellhaving an intake and exit opening, said shells successivelycommunicating with one another, a hopper communicating with theintake-opening of the uppermost shell, a conveyer within each of saidinterior chambers, mechanism to rotate said conveyers, said conveyersbe- IOO IIO

ing arranged to feed successively in reverse order, ducts successivelyuniting said interior chambers at opposite ends, an intakehoppercommunicating With the uppermost interior chamber, an exit-spoutextending from the lowermost interior chamber, a receiving-trough and anelevator communicating With said lowermost shell and saidreceiving-trough.

4. The combination with a suitable standard, of a plurality ofsuperposed housings provided With interior chambers, a plurality ofcounterpart shells forming jackets surrounding said housings, each shellhaving an intake and exit opening, said shells successivelycommunicating with one another,a hopper communicating With theintake-opening of the uppermost shell, a conveyer Within each of saidinterior chambers, mechanism to rotate said conveyers, said conveyersbeing arranged to feed successively in reverse order, ducts successivelyuniting said interior chambers at opposite ends, an intake-hoppercommunicating With the uppermost interior chamber, an exit-spoutextending from the lowermost interior chamber, an elevator eX- tendingfrom the exit-opening of said lowermost shell and communicating With thehopper extending from said uppermost interior chamber, a troughcommunicating with the exit-opening Within said lowermost shell, a ValveWithin said trough, and an elevator communicating With said trough andWith said hopper extending from the interior chamber of said uppermostcylinder as and for the 35 purpose set forth.

Signed in the presence of two Witnesses. SAMUEL B. SAMUELSON. CHARLES P.ANDERSON. Witnesses:

JOHN JANQUERT, NAT ANDERsoN.

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